Utilization of Supplementary Energy Sources for Cooling In Hot Arid Regions via Decision-Making Model

In hot arid regions where long hot summers are common place, energy consumption represents an aspect of particular concern especially as related to peak load. The selection of the best energy option is a complex function of many various variables and thus represents a multi-criteria decision-making problem. This study involved building a decision-making model in order to optimize energy consumption in hot arid regions. The study examined the best possible choice of energy source under hot arid conditions based on a number of aspects (criteria) that were subject to weighting by experts. The energy options considered were limited to commercial electricity, photovoltaic (PV), solar thermal, and the combination (coupling) of electricity and PV. The tool known as Analytical Hierarchy Process (AHP) along with the associate software package EXPERT CHOICETM were used in building the model and drawing conclusions. The findings of the study indicated that under normal prevailing conditions, PV represents the best choice of energy source in hot arid regions. The study demonstrated that the AHP provided a powerful analysis tool and lead to a highly consistent judgment and a quite reliable decision.